Kicked Puppy
by AwesomeDemigodz
Summary: Joby Bisset had been muted abusively by her father when she was nine years old. She grew used to it, and continued to grow used to it, but she disliked the attention she received and, ironically at the same time, the isolation that seemed to surround her. An outcast, absolutely. One hundred percent. But to Sirius, she was special.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, Potterheads! This is my first fanfiction on this site, so I hope I don't disappoint. I love constructive criticism, but no flames, please. Thanks! (:**

**Disclaimer: the original book and all characters but Joby are owned by J. K. Rowling, and this isn't canon.**

It took a while to adjust to this dungeon home, but the Slytherin common room had become more and more homey every day she spent at Hogwarts. Joby kept finding more things to like, more things to admire, and more people to talk to. Managing to keep up with her schedule was becoming increasingly less difficult, especially as Christmas came around, and she was finding new shortcuts to classes every day.

Christine had attempted to show Joby how to be More Like a Gryffindor as if Gryffindor was the best house to be in, but Joby decided to ditch Christine for much more selectively loyal friends instead of the kind that would change her because she wasn't the perfect friend just yet.

Joby began to love Hogwarts and treat it like her home. Of course, she wouldn't be going back to her parents for any holidays, so she figured it would be best to make the most out of this place.

Joby decided to keep her tie under her robes as she found herself bullied by the older Gryffindors, and it wasn't as if she had learned any defensive spells or was a favorite of many professors. Although...

As years pressed on, Joby became smarter and faster and stronger much more quickly. She kept her light hair up in a ponytail or bun with little bits framing her visage to not get caught or pulled by anything, and she felt the attackers wade off-possibly because they were leaving the school. She liked herself pretty well, and although her parents would not always come to similar terms, she kept her spirits up by staying close to her chosen family.

During fourth year, Joby had taken to wandering the halls secretly after curfew since Filtch didn't favor the dungeons and she could easily get away with it. She didn't find many other students do the same except for one. He was a Gryffindor, an odd kind of boy, and she figured he was the older (more handsome) brother of Regulus Black, who was a year younger than she.

Joby made sure to keep herself hidden from him, though she knew they would meet at some point. Other than the boy, there was a large black puppy who roamed Hogwarts after midnight whom she liked to see more than Sirius Black, though she still kept out of its way.

Each night, at ten-thirty, she would slip out of the common room and head across the school, through every hallway and up nearly every moving staircase to the Astronomy tower where she tended to gaze up at the stars and wonder. She liked her alone time, though it was scarce, and it meant that she could keep to herself for at least a half of an hour.

This is where she began to see who she called the "kicked puppy."

On a cold, November night, possibly the thirteenth or fourteenth, Joby could never remember, she found a figure in the Astronomy tower before her.

She kept herself low on the stairs up, just out of view of the person who was on his knees, whimpering on the floor below a telescope. The student's hair was dark, not much to be observed there for not many Hogwarts students had light hair, and the boy must have been tall and lean, possibly even fit.

She silently stepped closer up, thankful for the sturdiness of the castle's stairs, and tip-toed around to the figure.

Her fingertips gently brushed his shoulder to console him, but the boy lashed out and whipped around, crying out. "Who are you?"

Joby sat on the wooded ground, her legs crossed, and she put her two hands out. 'It's okay,' she mouthed. 'I won't do you any harm.'

The boy's eyes flew wide open, realizing who she was. His eyes flickered to the whitened scar running down her pale neck. "You're Joby."

Joby nodded, then pointed to the Gryffindor (by the looks of his tie, though who was to say; it was dark) in front of her. 'Sirius Black.' She held out her hands again. 'Take.'

Sirius Black smirked. "What do you want?"

Joby could hear the uncertainty in his voice. She kept her hands out steadily, acting as if he were a scared dog-which must not have been far from the truth.

The boy stood, making himself taller than her. "You're not that awful for a Slytherin." He put his hand out, tapping her little but of tie that stuck out from her collar. "I guess that's because you-" He stopped himself. "Why did you come find me here?"

Don't get so cocky, she thought. She pulled out her wand and wrote a multitude of fiery letters in the air between them:

**I ALWAYS COME UP HERE.**

Sirius nodded. "I don't."

Joby snickered. **HOW COME YOU'RE UP HERE NOW?**

Sirius's face fell. He kept his mouth shut.

She left the words in the air and turned to face the sky. She wrote more. **IT'S ALL SO BEAUTIFUL TO ME.**

Sirius leaned on the ledge next to her. "What?"

Joby didn't need to write anything now; she merely gestured out to the dark school grounds which were alive with glittering reflections of midnight dew, and the dark sky filled with the smallest of glittering specks that most have had some life to them for they were so beautiful, and the Forbidden Forest which seemed blue and grey without the light of the sun.

Sirius turned his silvery eyes to the landscape, drawn to whatever Joby must have called beautiful.

Joby took her turn to examine his face, noticing a shining streak running down the side from his eye. She lifted her hand to gently brush it away, though as soon as her skin met with his, Sirius Black leaped away.

Joby whipped her hand back to her chest, just as shocked as Sirius.

"What was that for?"

Joby sighed. He must not have been introduced to compassion in his life, just like her; and he was a boy, meaning his friends were like roughhousing brothers, not sweet sisters who would introduce him to kindness. She knew those.

She mouthed, 'Sorry,' and made to leave.

"Wait! I'm sorry." He took two long steps toward her and put his hand on her arm. "I didn't mean to jump."

Joby nodded and put her hand on his. She raised her wand and wrote in the air again, this time writing with smaller letters.

abused?

Sirius slowly pulled his hand away, his eyes drooping and his expression grim. "How would you know?" The sentence came out as a growl, whether he meant to hiss or not, and he leaned back against the wall of the tower and slid down to the floor, becoming smaller as he went.

She gave him a short, "hold on" look. Her fingers came up to brush the tear stain from his face again, and this time he didn't jump. He leaned into her gentle touch instead of leaping away as he had done prior, and she smiled when she took her hand back.

**You jumped**, she wrote, her writing becoming softer as she changed her perspective of the boy in front of her.

His eyes grew wide. "Is that not normal?"

Joby shook her head and sat neatly aside him, only inches from his side. **I want to help you. Who is it?**

Sirius turned his head to face the other direction, away from Joby. He mumbled something inaudible, but Joby truly wished to help. Abuse muted Joby. Not that anyone knew that, of course. It was too personal.

Maybe she shouldn't have asked him who his abuser was. It may have hit home for him, and she immediately felt bad after the sudden realization. She lifted her wand again to write, but before the hissing orange script floated from the tip, she heard a bang from underneath them.

It wasn't directly below the floor, more outside the building, but it was still loud and disruptive, and it made them both jump right out of their skin.

"What the-" Sirius Black leaped to his feet, looking out to the fields, and then he put out his hand to help Joby up to see what he was watching. A grin suddenly spread to his lips, and Joby noticed that they were quite smooth compared to other boys' mouths which were typically chapped and broken.

Joby beamed when she spotted her housemates blowing sparklers into the air, green, red, blue and yellow. The shouts of success were heard for miles, Joby figured, and they seemed to not be heard by any authority figure in the school. She eyed Sirius Black, whose mouth was spread from one side of his face to the other in glee.

"Who knew they could pull this off without us?" Sirius mumbled, presumably to himself.

~Line of the breakage~

It took many weeks of meeting in secret to properly get to know each other, but they made accomplished acquaintances by the end that was not the end.

Joby started to like Sirius, though she never told him (it's not like she could), even when fifth year rolled around and they had established a solid friendship. Her kicked puppy was warming up to her, acting less kicked than ever, and he was beginning to show her off to his friends-even though no one seemed to believe that Sirius Black, the notorious prankster, was ever capable of befriending the Mute Slytherin of Hogwarts.

On a cold night, specifically December twenty-ninth, they met again in the tower they had first spoken in.

Joby was, of course, wearing a green and grey scarf, and she was wrapped up in a thick robe for the winter weather-much unlike Sirius, who was decked out in jeans, a jumper, and boots.

The troublemaker was visibly shivering, but Joby could tell that he was trying to hide it and look tough. She pointed to her windbreaker and then to his chest, poking him right between the pectorals.

Sirius chuckled. "I'm not that cold," he promised, but his teeth started to chatter as a burst of wind flew by them.

Joby took off her scarf and tossed it around his neck, catching both ends, and then, when she had steadily wrapped her hands around the fabric, she pulled him up close to her, flush to her chest.

She rolled her eyes at him when his body shook suddenly with surprise and chills, and Joby decided to wrap her robes around him, too. She wasn't going to let this cocky little puppy kill himself. He smelled slightly of the dinner they had just eaten, maybe gravy and potatoes, and she could smell sweet blueberry pie.

Sirius smiled when she covered him with her warm jacket, but he said, "You didn't have to do that." As he wrapped his arms around her waist, however, he succumbed to the intrigue of her body heat, and he pulled her even closer.

She liked being so close to him when he let her. It was comforting to have a good friend she could be so close to. It wasn't that they were friends that she liked about it, because she would gladly become much more to him if that was what he wanted. It was their closeness and security with one another that she liked. She couldn't do this with anyone else; she didn't trust anyone as much as she trusted Sirius.

As they stood there, in the cold, wrapped up in Joby's windbreaker, Sirius began to hum. His voice made a deep, resonating tune, and he started to sway her to it.

It was just moments later that she realized that what he was humming had been playing below them for a minute or two, and she smiled.

The next words to tumble from Sirius's mouth shocked her, and she panicked, grasping for a response in her head.

"Could I kiss you?" He bit his lip and pulled himself away for a moment after saying this, but he quickly corrected himself. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked. Never mind."

She whipped her head back and forth suddenly to regain her confidence from the shock, but he must have taken it the wrong way because he apologized quickly again. Her head fell on his chest, and since she had no way of correcting anything she had done, she kissed him.

Sirius froze-not that he wasn't already freezing, he just seemed to seize up-and she pulled away immediately, biting her blueish lip.

They now stared at each other in complete and utter silence, their ears burning in the cold without motion.

Joby's straight, thick hair fell in front of her face, and Sirius steadily swept it to the side and behind her ear.

By way of habit, he placed his lips upon her mouth, slowly getting a feel for her limits, and letting her do the same.

Joby almost let go of her jacket, which would have blasted Sirius with bitterly cold winds, so she didn't. She did, however, stand on her toes to reach him, and she pulled him even closer to her, eliminating the slice of space between them. His cold lips were slightly chapped and did taste of a multitude of desserts. Her eyes stayed shut until her lungs began to hurt from the insufficient amount of oxygen she had been receiving.

They broke away slowly, their eyes staying closed, and they felt the other's breath puffing over their necks.

Sirius was the first to move, opening his mouth to speak but closing it again. Then he closed the space between them once more, realizing that it would be so easy to become addicted to her lips, whether words came out of them or not.

Her breath, he could feel, was warm, as if she had just been dunked in a cup of hot cocoa-and she smelled sweet and chocolatey, too.

Joby pulled away this time, coming down from her tiptoes and resting her head on his pulsing chest. She felt his heart beating, and she was reassured by the sound; it reminded her that this god of a man was still, unequivocally, human. This life-giving organ was what kept him alive, and she had long ago decided to keep it beating for as long as she could.


	2. Chapter 2

Sirius pulled himself out of bed quickly, the other boys asleep after a long full moon, and he stuffed his wand in his robes to meet Joby at the Black Lake.

His heart rushed out before him, and at once, he laid eyes upon her lean silhouette, and she faced away from him, out toward the water.

Sirius ran up behind Joby and wrapped her in a hug, giving her little kisses all over her cheek and neck. She giggled slightly at the touch.

"Hello, darling. How are you?" He let her turn around and kiss him quickly, and she signed a word to him in front of her chest.

_Good_.

Sirius smiled. "Nice to hear." He paused. "Er, to know." Over the last year, determined to understand her unspoken language, he asked Professor McGonagall about the hand gestures, and he figured it out for the most part.

Joby dropped her head into the crook of his neck and pointed to his chest.

_You__?_

"Not that bad. I accidentally told my boys that I like you, so I doubt it will be very long until they put two and two together, if you know what I mean." He chuckled a bit. "I hope you don't mind."

She felt his fingers run in circles on her back, and it tickled a little bit, though she doubted he would understand the sign language for it, so she dealt with it. She shook her head in response to his statement. She made the sign for "I love you," behind his back, debating with herself about telling him now. Their relationship had only been concrete for just a year yet, and this boy was known for jumping around to different relationships. But she did know that she loved him.

Warm lips on her neck made her drop the sign and tighten her hold on Sirius with surprise and endearment. He growled playfully into her neck and trailed kisses up to her jaw and cheek and all the way up to the corner of her mouth, where he pulled away.

Joby pouted cutely and pulled Sirius's face to hers, but before she could properly kiss him he pulled away and said, "You'll have to catch me, first."

He broke away from her and began to run, but Joby was quick on her feet, too, so she bolted after him. The chase didn't end as quickly as either of them thought, so they kept running until Joby pounced on him and they went tumbling through the grass.

Joby signed, Caught you, and kissed him firmly, grinning. She was below him on the ground, laying on her back as he held himself up on his elbows so he could kiss her but not crush her.

"You got me." Sirius rolled onto the ground next to her, wrapping his arm around her torso. "So, now that do we do about my boys?"

Joby lifted herself onto her side to face him and shrugged, laying her chin in her palm which likely would turn her hand red. She placed her other arm over Sirius's chest and brushed his embroidered Gryffindor crest with her thumb. He wore black cotton pajamas, but his robe hung over his shoulders as well--same as she. Joby flicked at the emblem over his heart, that heart of gold all Gryffindors must've had.

"So, you'll just leave it up to me, then?" He smirked. "Perfect."

Joby raised an eyebrow and signed, her expression salty. I can't talk.

Sirius laughed. "I guess you've got a point."

Joby kissed his cheek lightly and chuckled a little bit, not making a sound. A poorly-performed Silencio charm would do that to a person.

Sirius pulled Joby on top of him and ran his hand through her smooth hair to give her a little eskimo kiss and hold her tight to his chest. "You're so beautiful, darling."

Joby's cheeks heated up abnormally, and she nuzzled her nose into the crook of his neck so he couldn't see. She heard him laugh, and he kissed her ear.

"Oh, goodness, are you embarrassed?" his deep voice whispered.

Joby shook her head quickly, kissing his soft skin. She balled his shirt up into her fist and pushed herself up to look down into his perfectly-pigmented grey eyes.

Joby loved Sirius's eyes. They gleamed perfectly silver, and they shone dimly with both the light of the full, reflecting moon and his own happiness. Her own eyes, dull and dark, seemed everything short of appealing. She didn't like the way that yellow creeped in from the pupil to the iris, seeping into the not-much-better outer colours which could never be distinguished from green as blue or from blue as green.

Sirius loved what she could not--her beautiful, multicoloured eyes. Some flow of gold came into them from the deep black in the middles to the ever-changing green-blue oceans that he would willfully drown himself in. Compared to his metal-grey irises, which mustn't have been so interesting to look into, her elegant eyes bore into his soul with much ease; and yet somehow, Joby could look so...astonished when he looked into his eyes. He would never be able to understand her.

Joby lay her lips down onto Sirius's for a kiss, lifting herself up again to look at his flawless visage.

"Do you think it's late enough?" Sirius yawned loudly. "We might not want to be caught out so late, darling. I'm also-" he yawned in the middle of his sentence- "overtired by the...night I just had with my boys."

Joby smirked. She had seen the ruckus out at the Shrieking Shack while she had been practicing late-night magic out by the far end of the lake. She knew what a "night" her boy just had. She decided to tell him she knew.

_Werewolf?_

Sirius gasped. "What?" He sat up, pushing her to his lap.

_I know_, she signed. _You, dog_.

Sirius grabbed her hands, and his voice was almost silent. "How on Earth could you have figured that out? You have to keep it a secret." His expression contorted with fear, and he seemed like he was begging.

Joby giggled. She shook her head and made a motion at her lips as if locking a door. This wasn't sign language, but she knew he would understand. She squeezed his hands, which shook terribly, and kissed his nose.

Sirius let go of her hands and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I'm sorry. I...was trying to keep you away from the danger. I can't have you getting hurt. I don't think I would be able to live with myself." His right hand rose to tighten around her shoulders, and Sirius kissed her cheek lightly, for he feared she wouldn't accept anything more after he kept such a large secret from her for so long and now only revealed it after she had put him in an impossible place.

Joby gently extended her left hand flat out, palm up, and her other came down as well, vertical instead. She conveyed the motion of tilting her right hand up at an angle, obviously a sign, but Sirius didn't seem to understand. Instead, she signed the word in letters.

_I-T-S A-L-R-I-G-H-T_.

He seemed to understand. "Oh. I mean--er--okay. Er, you understand me, right?"

She nodded.

Sirius took her face into his hands and kissed her quickly. "That's good. I was going to tell you when we left Hogwarts, so you wouldn't have gotten into any mishaps or anything."

She nuzzled her nose into his neck and kissed his jaw.

Sirius held her in a hug and cuddled with her until he realized that the sky was lightening. Had he been out for that long? He had to get back to his dorm before the boys noticed his absence. To notify Joby, he cleared his throat and nodded to the sky. Her face went blank for a moment, not quite understanding the motion, but she then noticed the lighter shade of blue behind the stars. She smirked.

_Good morning_, her hands said.

Sirius chuckled. "Good morning to you, too, Beautiful." He lifted her off of his lap and yawned, readying himself to stand.

Joby reached out her hands to help him up and yanked him roughly to his feet as soon as he touched his fingers up to her palms. She caught him as he doubled over without balance, and he laughed unconfidently.

Their hands were linked as they made their way back into the castle through one of Sirius's favorite passages: the one leading to the kitchens from the greenhouse. On the way, Joby had to stop to readjust her sock quickly, which had been riding down her heel inside if her shoe. It was a quick readjustment, but it cost them about five seconds.

They made it back to their dorms quickly enough to not be caught by the Heads of House, but their friends noticed entirely.

~Line of the breakage~

Within the next few weeks, Sirius couldn't get his mind off of the secret Joby was inadvertently a part of. His hands stayed under his legs a lot, to keep them from bursting out in crazy gesticulations, as if he were trying to cover up a lie. Whenever he saw Joby, whether they were walking through the halls or sitting across the room in class, where they would have normally caught each other's eyes (Sirius often winked), he kept his head down or turned away.

He couldn't figure out why, but Sirius attempted to keep his secret life and his school life so much more separated now that she knew.

Joby figured she knew what was up. He needed time to process her new knowledge. She understood. She had to take her own time to understand what she had seen.

She wished she could catch his eye and he would wink, just like he used to. She missed waving subtle messages to him in the air.

If she thought about that, however, she would feel guilty for not wanting him to recuperate from the shock she had just dropped on him. She felt selfish when she wished he would look at her.

Exactly three and a half weeks went by without any sort of communication between them. The experience turned out to be difficult to comprehend for the both of them. The separation distracted them from their work, and neither of them were able to vent their problems out to the other.

As another week nearly crept past them, Sirius decided to do something outrageous. Thinking it up took no effort--outrageous things came to mind all of the time. The only hard part appeared to be going through with the act. It scared Sirius to think about how people would see him after he did this.

_You're dating the mute?_

_You're such a fuckin weirdo._

_Eew, man._

_Nice grab. Can't scream._

_Since when?_

_Hah. Softie._

_I thought you jumped around, Black? Does _she_ know that?_

He stayed curled up in his bed that morning as he thought about it. The rustling in the common room didn't quite excite him yet.

James, who must have been running all the way up to the dorms from the hallway outside, burst through the doorway and grabbed his pajama robes. "Mate! Miss Joby's outside, and she asked to see you!" James' grin spread wide and formed dimples (which he didn't have) in his red cheeks. "She drew in the air mate! Fire letters! She told me to get you!"

Why? He figured it was because of their separation. For weeks, they had avoided each other, and now was the time for that to cease.

He should've expected it.

James saw his eyes widen and laughed. "Come on, Padfoot. You're not scared of a girl, are you?"

You have no idea, Sirius wanted to say. She can be terrifying.

He sighed, knowing that his face had turned red. "Just bring me."

"Mate, you're in your pajamas. I'm gonna let you dress." James let go of his sleeve. "But you'd better get out of here."

Sirius sighed and pushed past James, grabbing his robe on the way. "It doesn't matter. I look dashing in a bathrobe, anyway." He slipped his arms into the fluffy sleeves as he stepped into the loud common room, and he used his shoulder to push through the heavy portrait hole.

Remus and Peter were conversing in the corridor with Joby, and somehow Remus knew exactly what she was saying. He must have studied the stuff. What a nerd.

Wait...that meant that Remus could eavesdrop on their conversations whenever he pleased.

"Yeah? Someone wanted me? Hello--er, hey, Joby." Sirius's hand rose to the back of his neck. He had a healthy fear of his secret girlfriend--he figured everyone did. His face heated up as he stepped closer to the cluster. He stepped up to her, in between his friends.

Joby smirked, tilting her chin upward to the sky. She raised her hands to sign, _Nice__ to meet you, S-I-R-I-U-S B-L-A-C-K_.

He chuckled bashfully. "Nice to meet you, too." He put his hand out to shake, but she shook her head. He retracted his hand carefully.

Joby looked to Remus and Peter and signed, _You__ may go. Thank you_.

Remus smirked and grabbed Peter by the shoulder, yanking him into the common room, probably eager to tell James something about Joby. As soon as the two entered and shut the portrait hole, Sirius took Joby's hands and squeezed them. He couldn't figure out what to say.

Joby chuckled, and she slid her hands from his grasp to say something. She extended her hand flat out and curled in her middle and ring finger, like the letters "I," "L" and "Y" in one sign. She placed it on his chest.

She had never signed this before, but he knew what it was.

_I love you_.

Sirius froze. His body would not move. His mouth would not form words. His eyes stayed trained on her hand and the sign they portrayed. Her fingers curled into a fist before he moved at all, and her hand came away.

She signed, Sorry, and then signed something else, too. She put out her left hand in a fist and used her right to slide her middle finger across the back of it. He didn't know what it was.

He took her hand and kissed her knuckles. "No. Don't be sorry," he said quickly. He pulled her into his arms. "I love you, too." His nose habitually snuck into the waves of her hair and he mumbled into the top of her head, "I should be the one who's sorry. I haven't been the best boyfriend lately--"

"BOYFRIEND?"

Sirius choked on his words for a moment, and he made a sound like a stifled, dying duck.

Joby tensed and pushed herself away from him slowly, gripping Sirius's robe. She looked up at Sirius. They both knew the voice well. They both hated the voice. They both hated the person who owned the voice.

"Snivellus."


	3. Chapter 3

Severus Snape snickered so slightly that Sirius may not have noticed if it weren't for his keen senses. "Boyfriend?"

Sirius let go of Joby to whirl around and turn the boy into a frog, but she gripped his arms too tightly to let him move. A growl hid behind his teeth as he cooly spoke to the bastard instead. "What's your problem, Snivellus? Having a little trouble processing that your Prefect has a life away from the cave?"

Joby frowned up at him. She raised her hand and signed, _stop_, against his chest. He shut his mouth and let her speak.

She stepped out from in front of Sirius to see Severus himself, in all his greasy-haired glory, smirking at them. Her right hand came up in front of her in a fist, and she made a sign that anyone would have understood perfectly fine, even if they didn't know sign language. She then waved him in the general direction down the stairs of Gryffindor Tower with both hands, signaling, _go_. She crossed her arms over her chest when he didn't make any effort to move.

"Since when's this been happening, Bisset?" he hissed. "Didn't think you'd be the one to go for the 'gold-hearted' Gryffindor." He sounded like he was accusing her of something. Snape knew it would make Sirius angry. He hissed as he said the name of his rival house.

Fists clenched behind his back so he could let Joby do the communicating, Sirius glared down at Snivellus. That was his girlfriend being bad-mouthed. That was his girlfriend, who had come up to see him after having been distant for nearly a month, being shamed by his least favorite person in the world for being a good girlfriend. For being a girlfriend at all. That was his girlfriend, being hissed at by a whiny bitch.

And she handled it amazingly.

Joby quickly signed, What do you want? Her colorful eyes held no sort of anger, nor did they convey any kindness. Her face remained motionless, as it sometimes did in classes when she wasn't interested.

"Why in Heaven's name do you even look at him? He's arrogant, selfish, and he's a Gryffindor. You could have at least gone for a Hufflepuff or something." Snape shoved his greasy fists into his pockets and huffed. His shoulders folded over and his slimy hair fell over them. He stood unsteadily on connected legs as if he were completely unable to look confident.

_Do you think I care that he's a G-R-Y-F-F-I-N-D-O-R? You never mattered to me; you are in my own house. I can love who I want, thanks. Did you follow me?_

"Does that _really_ matter? Why do you care if I followed you?" Severus's eyes darkened, and he took a step forward. His movement made Sirius tense and also step toward him.

"If you hadn't noticed, Slimeball, following someone is predatorial and creepy," Sirius growled. "No wonder Evans hates you even more than she hates James. Why do you care who Joby likes?" Sirius put a hand on her shoulder protectively and took another step.

Severus grimaced, and then grinned evilly as if he had some idea. "Why don't you let her speak for herself? Oh-er-wait-"

Sirius leaped at him with a yell and grabbed Snape's throat, and Snape's back crashed into the wall. The portrait hole opened to reveal James just as the two flew across the corridor, but he froze. He shot a look at Joby, who was readying herself to pull Sirius off the poor twerp.

Joby set her left hand on Sirius's right shoulder and gently pried his fingers from Snape's neck with the other. Sirius let his hands fall to his side and backed away. His eyes remained trained on Snape, though, however far she lead him away, and James stepped in between them.

"Mate."

Sirius blinked.

"Padfoot."

Sirius didn't blink.

"Sirius."

Joby grabbed his robe and pulled his face down to hers. She put their heads together and made him close his eyes, and she quickly balled his robes into her fists. She heard James turn and punch Severus, and she didn't move to stop him. She must focus on Sirius, whom she pulled halfway down the stairs of the tower to the castle's main body.

The boy curled himself around her when they stopped, shaping his body to mold into hers as he moved in to hug her. "He was rude to you."

Joby pecked him on the cheek with a chuckle. She nodded.

_I know._

Sirius sighed. "I hate him so much."

_I know._

"He shouldn't have followed you."

_Agreed._

"I'm gonna kill the shit-ball if he doesn't leave you alone."

Joby laughed silently, but she pulled away so she could sign to him. _I can handle it. It's just an insecure, annoying kid._

It took Sirius a moment and a half to realize she had said "him" and "he's," not "it." He smirked sadly. Sirius's hands lay at her waist, and his thumbs brushed her sides slowly. Sirius suddenly wondered if she had eaten enough recently; he could feel how thin her body became since even months ago. His arms almost made a full circle around her. She felt too small.

Oh, Merlin, he thought abruptly. She hasn't eaten because of me. He was ashamed to not have looked at her closely enough to realize what she had been doing to herself.

Sirius examined her closely; her cheeks shone pink, her lips still looked full, and her neck rested confidently upon her shoulders, just the way it always did-but he could see her collar bones at all times. That didn't look normal. Her skin nearly overheated his body, being so close, and Sirius began to sweat behind his neck. Much too hot.

"Darling..." He hesitated. It appeared as though she thought herself to be perfectly fine. He couldn't be sure whether she knew what he saw or what he noticed. "When was the last time you ate?"

Joby stiffened. She didn't answer but looked down at her feet.

"Oh, dear." Sirius cupped her small face with his palm and caressed her cheek with his thumb slowly. "I'm going to have you eat right now. Let's go." He grabbed her hand and hauled her to the kitchens. Breakfast passed hours ago, and since it was Saturday, classes were not in session.

Sirius pushed the door of the kitchens open and dragged her through to see the house-elves at work.

"I need you to give her something to eat," he begged, looking frantic. He was panting like a dog, steadying himself by placing his free hand on his knee. The other was gripped in Joby's.

Joby's eyes fluttered around the place, examining the low ceiling and the dirty floors. No, the floors _were_ dirt. The room, however old and musty it was, vibrated with coziness. Joby thought that maybe the elves gave off that feeling. She swore to bring Lucy here next year to keep her company and save her from Joby's mother. She would love the company, even if she was a little bit antisocial and timid.

"Sirius Black," grumbled a small voice. "Why would we give her food? She looks fine." He scrunched up his long, grey nose and snorted. He wore a bath rag over his body at the waist and had his fists at the knots on his hips. The little elf's eyes looked like little pools of pig-pink.

Sirius made a face. "She looks terrible. She hasn't eaten in forever."

Another house-elf waddled up to the other and smacked him on the arm. "Bungy! Be nice!" She turned to the couple and smiled. This one's eyes held a happy feeling in the bright purple irises. Joby liked her immediately. "What would you like, Miss?"

Joby shook her head. She didn't feel hungry. She felt fine. Her body was fine. She didn't need anything.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Give her anything. She needs to eat. She's skinnier than I've ever seen her, and she hasn't eaten enough for almost a month." He sat himself down on the ground and pulled Joby down onto his lap. "You're going to eat. Right now." He kissed her temple. The female elf-he hadn't caught her name-disappeared into another room.

Joby sank weakly into his chest. She couldn't fight it. She hadn't eaten or had anything to drink for maybe two days. Her head fell softly onto his shoulder.

Sirius hated this. His arms wrapped around too small of a body for his liking.

Joby's eyes shut. Her head lightened and her mind seemed to detach from her body, and her chest dropped weights from it. She couldn't feel Sirius's body anymore. Everything was gone.

Sirius recognized her heart slowing down. He grabbed her hand and called her name, hoping to wake her. She didn't move.

"Joby? Darling? Please wake up. They're getting you food." He placed two fingers to the pulse point of her neck, and his heart almost stopped. Her pulse was so slow, he barely felt it. "JOBY!" he yelled. She stirred, but her eyes didn't open. His breathing quickened and he grabbed the arm of another house-elf. "She's dying. Help me."

The elf smiled, nodded, and put her small, funny hand out to feel Joby's skin. "She's extremely dehydrated, dear. How long ago was her last drink of water?" Their eyes met, silver to blue, and Sirius bit his lip.

"I don't...I'm not sure." His hands shook. She was so dehydrated that she fainted. He felt even worse.

The elf muttered under her breath. "It may be best to see Madame Pomfrey."

Sirius gripped Joby tighter. "Can you get us there quickly?"

The elf from before, with the purple eyes, handed Sirius a plate with a small meat pie on it. "For the Miss. Would you like anything, sir?"

Sirius glanced at Joby's face and then at the new elf. "I have to get her to Madame Pomfrey. I might come back later, for sure. Thank you." He could smell the delicious food, and he hoped it would wake his precious girl up before she ran out of...whatever was giving her the energy to breathe.

"We'd better get a move on, Mister Black," the silver-eyed elf reminded him. She grabbed his sleeve and sent them into a whirlpool of transportation. He had never apparated before, and he felt his stomach almost leave him through his mouth. He wasn't sure if this was his favorite kind of wizard transport.

Without warning, a floor appeared underneath his legs and bottom again, and beds lined the walls of the new room. The infirmary seemed bigger, sitting on the ground.

Joby groaned and tried to open her eyes, moving her head around on his shoulder.

"Jo!" Sirius crushed her into his chest. "Joby. Please, darling-"

She clutched his shirt and tried to pull herself up, but she let go and gave up.

Sirius groaned.

"How long has it been since you drank anything, Miss?" The elf set her hand on Joby's slim shoulder.

She raised two fingers and signed _days, maybe_.

Sirius sighed and nuzzled his face into her shoulder. "You could have died, sweetheart." Her arms circled his hips unsteadily.

The elf all of a sudden called out. "Madame Pomfrey! We have a sick student!" She jumped a little and waved.

"Oh, goodness," she chided. "Put her up on a bed."

Sirius lifted her and stood. He did this so easily that he almost fell over in shock of how light she was. He hastily laid her on the bed behind him and kept his hand behind her head as she held his wrist. Madame Pomfrey took her place at the other side of the bed and checked her temperature, then her pulse. The healer winced.

"She's very low. You, Mister Black, may want to head back to your dorm and get dressed. She'll be fine. You, Miss Darby, can head back to the kitchens. Thank you." She took Sirius by the arm and lead him to the door. "She'll be fine."

"How long will she have to stay here?" He wrung his hands and turned to her.

Madame Pomfrey smiled and placed her hand upon his shoulder. "Not long. What's her malady?"

"She hasn't drunk any water for two days." He slipped his hands into his pockets. "She hasn't eaten well for a while, either."

"Oh, dear. It's a good thing you brought her now, then." Her eyes softened. "Now get dressed, dear. Don't you worry about Miss Bisset."

Sirius nodded. "Thank you." He turned and ran down the hall to the neverending staircases.

It took him minutes, maybe more, to get all of the way to the tower. Joby's incident crammed his head so full with distractions on the way that he had forgotten about the vanishing step on the fourth staircase from the top, and a few others further back, as long as the fact that when he passed Archibald Hudson on the twentieth left staircase up, he was supposed to jump to get to the stairs.

His left leg hurt, and so did his right shoulder and entire left side. Maybe it would have been better to just see her during the past three weeks instead of letting her dehydrate herself and have to be rushed to Madame Pomfrey.

He rammed his fist into a wall and all of the portraits jumped. He should've continually met with her. He was such an idiot. And a really bad boyfriend. He didn't deserve her.

_No one deserves her._

But she chose to be with him, and it now became his duty to respect that choice by being the best boyfriend of all time.

Sirius leaned against the wall he just hit and hissed at himself furiously. "Why the hell could you not have been a better boyfriend, twit? You know how to date people. You know how she is." Sirius punched his arm. He winced.

The Fat Lady's portrait was not very far away. He could merely step into it and head to his dorm to get changed to return to Joby. He could also go after Snivellus, who was probably down brooding in the dungeons, as usual. He considered his options:

1) go console his dying darling or,

2) go beat up the slimy, whiny bastard.

What he wanted to do was go beat up Snape for talking shit about his girl to her face. What he knew he had to do was check on Joby before anything horrible happened-which was probably unlikely, because Madame Pomfrey worked magic.

Instead of doing either of those things, he dashed through the portrait hole and leaped onto his bed next to James and Remus.

"Mate! What happened between you and Joby, eh?" James tapped him with his toes.

Sirius groaned into his pillow and wiggled out of his bathrobe, keeping his face down and his body lying flat on his stomach. "No good."

"Really? What happened?" Remus lay back onto his pillows and made the bed squeak. "You were doing fine before I left."

"Maybe it was because I punched Snivellus," James offered. He tossed his usual snitch up in the air and let it fly around before catching it, and he ran his fingers through his thick hair, smoothing it out. He messed it up again quickly.

Sirius shook his head. "Mo," he muttered.

"Eh? What did happen, then, mister ladies-man?" Peter came into the room now, and the scent of cheese wafted off of him. "Surely, you couldn't have messed things up so badly."

Sirius flipped over onto his back and covered his face with his hands. "That's not it. We've been dating for at least a year, now. Probably more. She also knows that I'm a dog-but that's not the point."

All three of the boys jumped up and began yelling at Sirius for not telling them sooner and how they could barely believe that he was telling the truth because he was usually a terrible liar.

Noise crowded his brain so much that he hadn't realized he had turned into a dog and started barking and growling and nuzzling his head under the covers.

When he did notice, he turned back and flipped back onto his stomach to brood a little bit.

They shut up now.

Except for James (the brat), who asked, "Can you tell us what's up with you?" and sat back down onto his bed to give Sirius some space.

"I met her by the lake last full moon after Remus had changed back. She told me she knew about us all-she saw us go back to the castle. She's smart, you know." Sirius roles onto his side and curled up into a ball. His fingers laced together around his knees.

"I left her alone for three weeks, and I didn't look at her. Today she came to see me because she missed me. I was being a horrid boyfriend to her. And then I realized she had gotten much too skinny...

"She hadn't eaten correctly for the last three weeks, and she hadn't had anything to drink for the last two days. Because of me. She's in the hospital wing now. She fainted when I brought her to the kitchen to get her to eat something." Sirius screwed his eyes shut. Hot tears behind his eyes threatened to pour out and flood the room.

Remus sat behind him and rubbed his back. "She'll be alright. She's a pretty strong sorceress, Padfoot. You of all people must know that."

Sirius nodded. "She sure is pretty." He let his hands relax, and his legs straightened out to take up all of the bed.

James laughed. "Only you, Pads." He threw his snitch up into the air again.

Sirius spasmodically leaped to his feet without a word and skittered over to his trunk where his clothes lay neatly. He balled up a set of robes and dashed clumsily over to the bathroom to change. He was allowed to see her once he was dressed.

"Padfoot? What are you doing?" Peter called.

"I can see her when I'm dressed. Pomfrey said."


	4. Chapter 4

The boys chased after Sirius as he hurried down to the hospital wing as quickly as he could. He had changed into a dog, too, which made him that much faster-and Remus had to run as a human.

For a while, James carried Remus on his back. "He really loves her, don't he?" Remus noticed.

Prongs snorted and nodded. His antlers almost hit Remus in the eye.

Sirius skidded to a halt, bashing sideways into the doors as he turned back into a human when he reached the infirmary. He shoved the doors all the way opened and almost hurled himself at her bed.

"Joby? Darling?" He grasped her fingers tenderly. His heart leaped into his throat when he felt her squeeze back, turning her head. Her eyes opened slowly.

She smiled. She mouthed a word. 'Sirius.'

He nodded quickly. "Yeah, it's me, beautiful." He cupped his hand over her cheek. "This is all my fault." He kneeled beside her. Her eyes followed him, even as she shook her head.

'Mine,' she mouthed. 'My fault.'

Sirius brought her fist up to his mouth and kissed it numerous times. He sighed. "No. I didn't let us meet. I left you alone for three weeks, and-"

"Padfoot," called out another voice. "Just kiss her, already."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Why did I have to tell you about this, again? Maybe I should just obliviate the three of you," he considered.

Joby yanked his arm towards her, however, before he could go through with the threat to his friends. 'They're not wrong.' She pushed her mouth onto Sirius's and let him pull her up to sit, curling up her legs underneath her. She threw her arms around him and pulled him close to her, touch starved as well as dehydrated and hungry.

She had to stay aware of her new food-and-water bracelet, which injected her needed fluids into her as she recovered. Breaking that would not be good.

Her arms came back from around his neck to hold her hands on his chest as she continued to kiss him, and he curled his hands into the curve of her hips to hold her close to him.

Whistles sounded from the three others who watched this display of romance gleefully. Sirius pulled slowly away from Joby and held her in a tight hug, attempting to ignore his friends.

"You could have died because of me," he whimpered. "That's no one's fault but mine." He heard something come from the boys behind him, but he could have cared less.

Joby pushed Sirius away for a second. She examined his face, framing it with her hands. 'No.' She frowned.

"Yes," he insisted desperately. "If I hadn't been so...ignorant, I guess, you wouldn't have stopped eating." He placed his hands on her knees and patted them with almost every syllable.

Joby laughed and leaned into his shoulder, for she was becoming more unstable by the moment. 'No.' She pulled her wand out and waved it swiftly around once. A piece of paper snapped into existence and fluttered into her lap. She handed it to him.

The boys came closer and lay themselves out on beds near the couple. "What does it say, Pads?" James pried.

Sirius scanned over the cursive, and anger boiled hotter and hotter under his skin. "And this was written by your father?"

Joby nodded. She lay completely down in his lap and let her eyes fall closed. Kissing him had taken up much of her newly-acquired energy, and she wasn't supposed to have visitors at all for fear of breaking.

Sirius ran his fingers through her hair and pushed it from her face. It was soft and smooth as if she had just taken a shower yesterday. He knew that wasn't true, though. She wouldn't have been so dehydrated if that appeared to be the case.

Sirius growled at the paper in his hand and crumpled it into a ball to toss to James, who caught it as easily as he caught his snitch. James accidentally ripped the page a little while trying to open it, but he managed.

_Dear Jobes,_

_Don't come home this summer. I don't have time to take care of you and your muteness. It's not fair to me that I have a difficult time translating those stupid signs of yours, and I have to look at you to do so. You can't even make sounds to tell me when to look at you. For my own sanity, find somewhere else to stay for the summer. Get a job so you don't have to come back here again and you can buy your own house._

_Make sure your brother knows that you won't be coming home. He will, though. I'm not sure that was clear._

_I hope you realize that being mute is one of the least awful things you could be, and that's what I'm having you leave for. You're also in Slytherin-that Black family's house. I remind you to stay far away from them once more._

_Love,_

_Papa._

"What the hell?" James smacked the note into Peter's chest. "What on earth kind of father is that?"

Sirius looked up from Joby, who had fallen asleep very quickly. "One who doesn't like their kid. He's the reason she can't make any sort of sounds."

James' jaw dropped to the floor, as well as Peter's. They had fairly kind households, and neither of them could imagine such a terrible home.

Remus spoke up. "What did he do to her?"

Sirius shrugged. "I think he cast an incorrectly performed Silencio charm on her. She was nine, I believe. She didn't tell me anything else."

James' eyes blew up with fiery intensity. "How could anyone do that to a kid? And at nine." James' face fell into his hands. "Is that what you went through, mate?"

Sirius shook his head. He kept his eyes on Joby. "My house is just all focused on my brother. He's better than me in every way-except looks, of course. It was just neglect. Both of us definitely underwent the Cruciatus Curse more than once."

The three boys looked shocked. Each of them stared at Sirius and looked him up and down to make sure he was still all there. Their eyes remained as wide as the dinner plates in the great hall. Sirius could see their uvula, their mouths hung so wide open. Remus's tongue was the only one that seemed to be brushed.

Sirius nodded. "Yeah. I guess that's not normal." He moved Joby up to lean on him, and her head fell onto his shoulder. He laid his head on hers comfortably. "But that's the sole reason I didn't tell you about this," Sirius confessed, gesturing to Joby and himself. "She'd get into major trouble if anyone knew."

James hissed suddenly. "Would you? Get into trouble?" His legs hung together over the side of the bed, connected at the ankles.

Sirius shrugged. "I don't know. Frankly, I don't care. But I want to make sure that Joby doesn't get hurt."

Peter huffed with a little mousey smirk. "You love her."

Sirius froze. "I...yes. I do. I-why did-what makes you want to point that out now?"

Peter snickered. "You kinda act different. You know...when she's around, or when you think about her, or when you're with her." Peter smiled and shoved his hands under his legs.

Sirius raised his head. "No."

James scoffed. "Of course you do! It's like me with Evans." James began playing with his snitch again.

Remus snorted. "Yeah, right. Lily despises you. They're in love."

James huffed and dropped his body back onto the bed, laying down comfortably. "Whatever."

Sirius smirked. "You can leave now. I'd like some time with her, please." He gripped her hand carefully and examined her relaxed face. He jumped as James turned into a full-grown stag right in front of him, and Remus and Peter hopped aboard.

"Thanks."

~Line of the breakage~

Sirius woke several hours later, after the first good sleep he'd had in weeks, next to a beautiful face that he could have stared at for days on end.

Joby's eyes may have been closed, but they had just the right curve to them even when she slept. Her darkly-rooted but dirty-blonde hair was messed and covered her face in such a way that Sirius could not bear to touch it for fear of breaking a perfect veil in front of her visage. He just loved her nose; it was perfectly poised a little bit upward, and he could have kissed it if she would not have awoken. Her light, chapped lips lay together in an adorable pouted shape, and he wanted to kiss those, too. He wanted to kiss all of her. Even the long, white, rough-looking scar that lay across her neck.

Sirius tightened his grip on her waist as someone entered the room.

It was just Pomfrey, who had come to check on Joby for the last time tonight.

"Mister Black," she whispered. "Head up to bed. Miss Bisset will be fine."

Sirius snuggled even closer to her. "I don't want to leave."

"Rules are rules, my dear," Pomfrey insisted. "You can come as early as you'd like after breakfast in the morning."

Sirius sighed and pushed the perfect veil of hair from her face and kissed her on that perfect nose. "Goodnight, beautiful." He rose from the bed, but Joby's arm whipped out and latched onto him.

She shook her head and pulled him back down, keeping him right flush with her chest. She signed behind Sirius's back where he couldn't see.

"Sweetheart...he has to sleep in his dormitory," the Healer sighed. "I wish he could stay, but he has to get back to his dorm before Filch sweeps the place."

Joby slowly and tiredly let go of him, nodding. She pulled him in for a kiss once more, than dropped her hands down by her chest to sign, _goodnight, love_.

"Goodnight, darling," Sirius whispered back.

~Line of the breakage~

Back in the common room, Sirius curled up by the fire on the squishy red couch. No one was awake any longer, and Sirius wanted to think a while before heading up to see his mates.

His shoulders sagged under the weight of lost energy, and his head fell flat on the pillows. His legs started to ache for some reason as he lifted them to set on the far arm of the couch, so he dropped them quickly. They began to ache more.

Sirius groaned. "Ow." The cushion muffled his voice, and he barely heard himself, much to his relief. Being quiet reminded him of Joby.

He had been so terrible. He would never understand why she stayed with him. She lay in the hospital wing because he neglected to speak with her for three weeks. Sirius punched the couch sadly.

"Mate," a voice behind him called tiredly with a yawn. "Get to bed."

Sirius shook his head. "Leave me to brood. I must reflect on my horrible behavior."

James scoffed. "Sirius, it's that letter's fault. Go beat up her dad, not yourself. Get to bed, or I'll haul you up there myself. Remus's night is coming up, and we both know to be fully rested for that. If you're distracted by being a 'bad boyfriend,' you won't do well." He grabbed Sirius by the back of his shirt and hauled him to his feet.

Sirius made a face. "But I was a bad boyfriend. I almost let her die, and she would certainly not have survived if she hadn't come up to see me. No one else would have noticed." Sirius kicked the table next to him and dropped onto his knees. "I should have looked at her at least once." His voice quieted with each word. His legs hurt more now, and he could smell James' strong, woody cologne waft off of the boy.

"Go to bed, moron," James ordered. He locked his arms under Sirius's armpits and carried him up to the dorm. He may not have been the lightest boy, but James managed.

A/N: I know this chapter is really short. Thanks for reading


	5. Chapter 5

It took Sirius two days to find Snape alone so he could hex him.

He found the little bastard in the bathroom, washing his hands carefully. "Hey, Snivellus," he shouted, raising his wand. He waited for the git to turn around before hitting him with a stunning spell, which Snape deflected.

"What the hell!" Snape yelled. He shot a blue spell at Sirius, who leapt out of the way. "You asshole!" Another spell flew past Sirius's head; just bad aim, that time.

"What gave you the terrible idea of following Joby up to Gryffindor tower?" Sirius growled. He tossed a paralyzing spell at his opponent.

Snape deflected it and whipped it back at him. "And why should I have to tell you this?"

Sirius charged at him and launched him into the wall with so much force, he broke a mirror with Snape's spine. "You have no right to follow people around like a bloody creep! No doubt you've joined You-Know-Who and his band of racist lunatics." Sirius pushed himself away from Snape, who had readied another spell on his wand.

"Shut up, you rich little twerp! You have no idea what I've had to do to get there!" Snape flicked a white spell at Sirius, which almost hit him--but someone else interfered before it got to Sirius.

He whirled around to see his little brother standing dominantly in the doorway of the washrooms. "Reggie! What have you been up to, as of late?" A crazy grin spread across his lips.

"Shut your mouth, Sirius," said Regulus, making a face. "I'm taking you both to see Slughorn and McGonagall." He dropped his wand into his robes and seized them both by their ties, causing them to walk backwards. "This is the last time I'm going to stop you from killing each other, I swear," he murmured angrily. "Could you not leave each other alone for at least a week? That would be monumental." Regulus veered up two flights of stairs and shouldered through a door at the end of a bright hallway lit by blue flames on the walls. "Professors," he announced. Sirius couldn't see anyone he was talking to. "They were going to kill each other in the bathrooms."

"Oh, not again." It was McGonagall. "Why is it always you, Snape? With either Potter or Black. Dear, dear. Sit them down, Mister Black."

The two were tossed into seats behind them and were turned around to face the professor. She looked astonishingly annoyed, with proper reason.

"Sorry, Professor," Sirius began. "It--"

"It most certainly will happen again, Black. You full-well know it," she scolded. "Don't try to tell me it won't." She was stood straight up, and her fingertips lay powerfully on the desk in front of her. Her tall, green witches' hat sat next to her arms, as if she had just smacked it down onto the table. Her eyes bore into the boys', terrifying as always.

"Actually, ma'am," Sirius said carefully, raising his finger to make a point, "I was going to tell you that the reason I ever came up to him was to ask him why he had followed Joby around the school like the slimy creep he is." His head turned to glare at Snape, who hissed in return.

"You attacked me without warning, you ass!" Snape jumped to his feet, but before he could do anything, Regulus shoved him back down to his chair.

"God, you idiot," the younger boy grumbled. Without hesitation, he raised his head and addressed Slughorn, who had been cautiously waiting at the other end of the Head-Of-House's room with none other than Joby herself, who had her arms behind her back. "May I request that these insufferable potatoes be separated at all possible times?"

Slughorn shuffled forward and nodded. "I believe you have a good idea, Mister Black. Do you believe it could be possible to keep these boys apart?" He turned sheepishly to McGonagall as the two other Heads tuned into the conversation. Slughorn's hands clenched together around his wand.

Joby frowned at Sirius and pulled her hands up to say, _You can't stop, can you_?

Sirius shook his head. He opened his mouth to say something, but he shut it hastily, remembering the crowd.

"Black," Slughorn said urgently. "Keep your eyes off the lady and focus.

Snape snickered. "Yeah, Black. She's just a distraction."

"Mister Snape!" McGonagall cried. "Week's worth of detention for you!" McGonagall plucked her hat from the desk and placed it on her head. "You will not speak of a woman like that."

The professor hadn't even realized that Sirius's eyes had gone dark and his fist was jammed around his wand, or that Regulus' mouth was tugged into a ruler-line, his hand also at his wand. Both brothers were ready to pounce with one movement.

"I second that," Regulus said terribly. "She's not a distraction. She's a person. She's better than you'll ever be, with that dense attitude."

Sirius stood slowly. "I think it's safe to say that I agree. You'll leave her alone, Snivellus, or I'll make sure you never get the chance to look at another lady again."

Snape crossed his arms over his chest. "Can't take a joke," he mumbled.

"Sounds like something a guy would say after assaulting a lady at a bar," Sirius growled. He kicked over Snape's chair with a prominent shout. "Now you leave the ladies in this castle alone. No one deserves to be anywhere near you."

McGonagall made a small whimpering sound, almost ready to give up. "Could you both sit? Please?" She gestured to Sirius's chair and punched the bridge of her nose in between her index finger and thumb. She turned to Joby. "You, my dear, have some sleeping and eating to attend to. Preferably not in that order. You may go, if you wish."

Joby nodded and silently disappeared out the wooden door without another word.

Sirius's eyes refocused on McGonagall. "Professor, if you please--"

He needed nothing but a stare to shut up.

"Black, if you please, I'm trying to help the both of you stay out of each other's hair," retorted the professor. "It would do you well to keep quiet as I decide on your fate."

Sirius dropped his head, and he flicked at the little symbols on his black wand. He didn't know exactly what they were, but he liked them there nonetheless. He liked feeling them on his skin when he cast spells in a duel, or just in general. He made a mental note to thank Mr. Ollivander for his nice wand the next time he was at Diagon Alley.

~Line of the breakage~

_He really shouldn't have,_ Joby signed to Lily as they ate in the library, discussing Sirius and James.

Lily nodded. "I agree. What Sirius did was a little out of control. Did he tell you exactly what happened?" She tossed a chip into her mouth, and then took a bite of her chicken-pot-pie.

Joby shook her head. _Just that he wanted S-N-A-P-E to stop following me_. Joby sipped her chamomile tea slowly. The heat remained just intense enough to burn her tongue. Her divination textbook lay open across her lap, just like Lily's.

Lily sighed. "Snape used to be such a good guy. I don't understand what's gotten into him, lately." She flipped the page in her book. "What was the question, again?"

Joby lifted the paper into her sight so she could see.

"Do three leaves symbolize...no. They don't. Thank you, Joby." Lily smiled brightly. "Hey...what's going on between you and Sirius? You've been hanging out a whole lot, and the whole outburst with Sev was about you. Does he like you?" Lily's jaw dropped open and she slammed the book shut on her own hand causing Joby to jump. "Are you secretly...dating?"

Joby kept her face blank. She had practice playing try-not-to-laugh games with Sirius, as if preparing for this moment. _Are you and J-A-M-E-S together_?

Lily shook her head almost furiously, but her face turned red. "No."

Joby smirked with satisfaction. But_ you like him_, she observed. Joby admitted that Sirius's best mate had become quite the gentleman lately, especially towards Lily. He stopped pestering her constantly, and he left her alone for the most part._ I don't blame you_.

Lily's face flushed, and her hands squeezed her book, almost crushing the pages together. "I don't like James!"

"Who doesn't like me? Hello, there, Evans. Nice seeing you," he greeted cheerfully. The bookshelf next to him braced his shoulder, giving him a relaxed look. "Doubt you feel the same."

Lily threw her book to the ground next to her feet and stormed down an aisle, knocking over Joby's stack of books on the way. She picked them up and reset them the way they were before continuing on her way to the other end of the library. James stepped forth to follow her, but Joby put up her hand.

_Let her go_.

James nodded and leaned against the bookshelf again. "How've you been, Bisset?"

Joby shrugged. _Not bad_.

"That's good. Any news on Sirius? I heard he attacked Snivellus." James chuckled. "Lucky."

Joby smiled and shook her head. I'm_ going to follow L-I-L-Y._ Joby lifted herself up into her legs, but before she could get going and find Lily, James touched her shoulder.

"Put in a good word for me, would you? If you please?" He held something in his hands--his little snitch--nervously.

_Of course_. Joby smiled. She was more than willing to let him have one or two good words.

Lily sat at the end of an aisle in a daze. Her eyes remained trained on the carpet as if it were about to move at any second. Her body, seated with her legs folded up in from of her, appeared very small. Joby chuckled.

She kneeled in front of Lily and covered her shoulder with her nimble fingers, snapping her fingers in front of her face. Lily jumped and stared up at Joby, wide-eyed.

Sorry, she signed. I shouldn't have said that. She put both hands on Lily's fists and squeezed them, then opened her finders and grasped them. She pulled Lily gently to her unstable feet and swung her arm around her. _If you want to see him, J-A-M-E-S is still--_

"How would you know I want to see him?" Lily growled quietly.

It was in your eyes. _You don't hate him, I know_. Joby lead her to the boy slowly, passing five books she thought for a moment of taking to study with.

"You don't know that. Potter may be good-looking," she hissed under her breath, "but he's such a jerk!"

Joby shook her head. _Once you get to know him, he's good._

"Maybe to you because you're--" Lily stopped herself. "You're special. You're different."

Joby shrugged. _I'm a S-L-Y-T-H-E-R-I-N_.

"I guess...it would be hard to make friends with someone from the rival house," Lily agreed.

_Yes_. Joby smiled faintly.

"I mean...I'll give it a try." Lily stood with Joby's help, but she hesitated to walk forward. "As long as he doesn't say anything...flirty."

Joby smiled. _Good. I think this will go well_.

Lily made her way back to her work wordlessly after that, barely looking up when the boy greeted her.

"Hello, Evans. What are you up to?" James was still leaning on the bookshelf, though now he had his snitch out and he ruffled up his hair as he tossed it and caught it.

"That's none of your--" She stopped. "I was going to finish my studies." She corrected herself as she caught her words coming out stiffly. Maybe it wasn't a bad idea to befriend him.

"Ah, studies. Horrid things, aren't they?" James kept his eyes on his snitch as they conversed. He caught it and grinned, throwing it once again into the air where he grabbed for it again.

"No." Lily sat herself on her chair and pulled up her book again, rifling through the pages to find the one she'd lost. Once she found it she scanned through the words to find the answer to a question on the homework and wrote it down quickly.

James chuckled. "Well, I guess not for someone like you." He caught his snitch again before it came to bother Lily.

The Gryffindor stiffened at the remark. "What do you mean, someone like me?"

"Someone who actually cares about schoolwork. Remus, for instance. And you."

Joby grinned. Compliments about something other than her dashing appearance was a step. Lily seemed to think it, too.

Joby smiled, and she dropped her gaze to the books on the ground to pick up the one from Herbology. She flipped the textbook open to a page on ordinary botany--muggle botany. Aloe vera seemed to be a popular healing root. She wondered if it actually helped very much, without magic. After thinking inside of her head for more than a moment, she figured that Muggles must have ways to heal themselves without magic. They survived for this long without it, after all. She sat herself in a seat distanced from the others, who continued to chat quietly.

She summoned a muggle studies book from the other side of the library and closed her other book, tossing it on the floor beside her to open the one she had just summoned. She decided to check it out for regular reading out of curiosity. She knew a man at the ministry who studied muggles intently, Arthur Weasley, and she wondered if she would be able to work with him in muggle studies when she graduated.

She lifted her head instinctively as someone walked into the library. She grinned as she recognized Trinity Matthews, her dorm roommate, and she waved her over. Trinity signed in and gladly greeted her in sign language--she was deaf.

_Hi!_

_Hello! How is your homework going? Would you like to study with us?_

_Of course! What is that book?_

_Muggle studies._

Trinity's eyes grew wide. _Muggles? What do you care for muggles?_

_I find it interesting how they do things without magic. So many things._

_But why do you care? It's not like we'll have to live there any time or do anything without magic._

Joby shrugged. _It's just interest_. She put her head down into the textbook.

"November's coming soon," remembered Lily cheerfully. "It's almost time for the holidays! We get to go back to our families in a few weeks." She was grinning ear-to-ear, but Joby wasn't so happy. The reminder made her nauseous.

November loomed over Joby's shoulder like a tree branch about to grab the back of her collar and yank her backwards so she would fall to the ground. November meant that she would return to her father's house very soon. November meant cold. November meant no Sirius. November meant all bad things coming into light and being flashed in her face by her family.

She hated November.

James recognized the look on her face and a thought popped into his mind. "Hey, Joby, could I talk with you for a minute? I have an idea."

She nodded and followed him a few feet away from the other girls.

"I know your dad is...a problem when you're on holiday. I'm sure Sirius wouldn't object if I offered you a place at my parents' house over Holiday vacation, if you'd like. They would love you. Would it be alright with you if you spent the holidays at my place instead of yours?" He shifted from one foot to the other in anticipation. Sirius was going to love this, and he wanted to help Joby.

She nodded and signed a few words, but then realized James wasn't as good with signs as his best friend. She pulled out her want and wrote in the air: **That would be wonderful, thank you. **

"I'll be sure to bring it up with my parents," he promised. His grin spread wide across his cheeks and he adjusted his glasses habitually. "I do hope we can sort something out." He patted her shoulder and allowed her to make her way back to the two other girls who sat and stared at them as they returned.

Maybe this November didn't have to be so bad, after all.


	6. Chapter 6

**WARNING: minor sexual assault in this chapter. Mentions in future chapters.**

By the time Christmas break had come around without a single incidental meeting between Severus and Sirius thanks to the teamwork of Regulus and Joby herself, Joby and James' parents had communicated and confirmed that she would absolutely be welcome to stay for the vacation, as long as James knew "what he was getting himself into."

The weeks leading up to their break were quite uneventful, spare the end-of-semester exams and tiresome holiday cheer.

Sirius made sure to keep Joby entertained as well, popping up at the least significant times to wish her happy holidays and give her a kiss: during her studies, as she sat alone at the library reading, while she was commuting through the halls with her friends, who knew about Sirius's antics, and even when no one was watching during classes.

One night, in the middle of dinner, Sirius came up behind her as she ate. He tapped her on the shoulder, and she turned.

"M'lady Joby," he greeted. "Season's greetings. I'd like to propose something rather preposterous." He took her by the hand and guided her to her feet, where she crossed her arms firmly over her chest.

"Would you, darling," he began, shooting her a wink, "Consider taking a nice walk through Hogsmead next week?" A bouquet of roses fluttered into his hand from wherever it may have been earlier. Sirius held them out to her.

Joby smirked. She took the flowers and placed them behind her on the seat, immediately grabbing Sirius's face and kissing him.

The whole Great Hall fell silent...

And everyone cheered.

Funny enough, seconds later, bustling resumed and everything went back to normal-except the two wizards in the middle of the hall, who stopped snogging but held each other as they sat. Witches and wizards alike repeatedly snuck glances at them and whispered about them, mumbling loudly enough for the Hall to sound normal. Teachers pretended not to notice.

On the day of the Hogsmead trip, younger girls flocked Joby and Sirius, asking them what was going to happen this trip, who in their families knew (which hit too close to home for Joby), and sometimes if their brothers were single.

The last answer was a hard no. Regulus and Kaylo had been dating around for a while, possibly for two whiles. They snogged each other from time to time, as well, but that was confidential information, and not for prying ears. Her father didn't need to know that either, but it was much easier to keep the two boys under-the-radar than she and Sirius were now.

Once the couple arrived at the Three Broomsticks, Joby could finally relax. No one in this place would even notice them amid all the decoration and holiday bling. She laced her fingers in Sirius's hand as he ordered two hot butterbeers and looked around skeptically. She giggled when she saw her brother with Regulus, but her spirits were suddenly dropped by two Ravenclaws who sashayed up to them and sat, unraveling their parchments of homework. Regulus and Kaylo were just there to study. What a waste of precious time they could be using to have fun-or hang out with each other.

Joby firmly grasped her fizzing butterbeer when she received it and lead Sirius to a corner table in the back of the busy bar and curled up to him when he sat with her.

"How happy are you, now that I can love you in public?" Sirius wondered aloud.

Joby felt herself blush and she hid her face in his shoulder. Once it had surpassed, she lifted her head and pecked him on the nose with a little smile. She placed her head on his shoulder, and her legs pulled up underneath her. She shivered.

Sirius chuckled and opened his jacket to wrap around her. "Pretty happy, eh? Me, too." He paused. "Do you find it...unfair, for lack of better words...that Regulus and Kaylo can just...be like this and not have to worry about your father?" He rubbed her shoulder to warm it and kissed her nose and set his head down on her shoulder.

Joby snaked her hands around his waist and nodded. She sighed. She wanted to tell him without letting go of him that Kaylo had always been the better, favorite child. It had never mattered to Joby until now when she could but he couldn't get in trouble for being with a Black.

She decided not to think about Kaylo's "youngest son privilege" for the rest of the date.

~Line of the breakage~

Joby packed her trunk swiftly in preparation to head for James Potter's house. She had barely anything to pack anymore, but she was missing her mother's old overrobe. Joby called Réenée over to help, and Réenée immediately helped Joby search for her robes.

"Would you have left it in the bathroom? Oh. Checked." She thought for a few long seconds. "Common room, possibly? It could've been misplaced after the laundry was done."

Joby nodded and thanked Réenée. Her legs hurried her down the steps and into the deep, dark, despicable dungeons. She headed for the laundry returns, and sure enough, her robes were hanging from the side of the basket. She grabbed them and readied to finish packing.

As she scurried back upstairs, another problem arose. Snape stood between herself and the girl's dorm, watching her hungrily with a foul grin between his cheeks.

Joby tried to back away and head down a different route to her room, but Snape followed. Like the creep he was.

Sirius had been right: his motives were completely predatorial. Joby ran as fast as she could away from Snape, and she made it out of the common room, but he caught her wrist roughly and crushed her face-first into a wall just hard enough to shock her.

She felt his chest grind against her back, and his hot, grimy breath blew past her ear. "Nice catch, Black," he hissed. "Can't scream."

Joby wrestled with Snape, trying to get away with all of her weak might until he turned her around and crushed her mouth in a dreadful kiss.

Because she had made herself sick a few months ago and hadn't fully recuperated, she wasn't able to completely push him off. She wasn't able to get to her wand in her back pocket because he held her arms high above her head, and she wasn't able to move her feet because he was stepping on them; she was helpless.

Severus moved his mouth to her neck, which he bit and licked. She squirmed away, but he kept one arm around her torso. She spit on the ground, revolted by the bitter taste of Severus.

The arm that stayed at her waist brushed over her back pocket; her wand. Severus plucked it from her jeans and tossed it down the hall. Now, she had no defenses at all. She was done.

She wished Kaylo would burst out of the common room, sensing his sister in distress, or Réenée, who could notice that Joby had been gone for longer than she should have.

Snape touched her in violating places now. He reached up to her chest and pulled down the shoulder of her shirt, exposing her bra. He ripped the shirt completely off.

She screamed, but there was no noise, as always.

Joby's eyes filled with tears. She had never felt so open and weak in her life. People knew about her and Sirius, people knew about her father, and now Snape was mercilessly violating her in the middle of a dungeon corridor, about to do so much worse.

Snape took a small step back from her to get a better angle on her and to steady himself for once in his life. Joby was much to out-of-it to realize that one of her feet was free, and Snape readjusted himself too quickly for her to use this slip-up to her advantage, too, positioning his knee in between her legs.

Joby let her body fall completely. So many good things had happened to her for so long, it was only fair that this occurred now.

Fate has a funny way of performing this balancing act, she thought morosely.

Snape chuckled. "Oh, Fate's not what's at work, Bisset. This is pure revenge."

A ligilimense, her mind told her. Shit.

"Yes, good girl," he hissed. "I can read your every thought. You can't hide anything from me."

Joby attempted poorly to free herself again, this time latching her teeth onto a part of his slimy hair and taking it from his head.

Snape screeched in pain, and he pushed himself very far away from her, patting his head. "Argh!"

Joby pounced on her wand and brandished it in front of her. _Sectumsempra! _she silently cursed as she spit out the hair grease.

An enormous bloody gash spread along Snape's body, and he doubled over in pain.

Joby had to ponder for a moment. Should she heal him, or let him die? He deserved to die. After everything he had done to her, Lily and the boys, she should leave him to bleed out.

Joby knew, however, that if she killed someone today she would want to kill someone tomorrow. And tomorrow would turn into today, and then she would want to kill someone overmorrow. She bent down next to Snape and made sure he could hear her mind.

_If I kill you,_ she thought to him, _the world will be a better place. But. If I kill you, I'll want to kill more. I'm fixing you up, now. Next time, I may not be so lenient._

Joby poked Snape in the wound, solely to hear him make a sound of pain. She then placed the tip of her wand at the end of the hash and thought, _Vulnera Sanentur_.

The blood surrounding him on the floor crawled back into his body, and the terrible cut began to seal itself up.

Joby rose to her feet and let them carry her back to her dorm, where she pulled another shirt on and placed her mother's overrobes preciously into her trunk. She'd folded the robes hastily and shoved them into her trunk so quick she hadn't noticed that the corner of the folded robes didn't quite match up with the corner of the chest, and she hauled herself onto her bed and curled up under every blanket, shielding herself from any external stimuli. Tears breached her eyelids and pushed their way out to the surface of her skin. Tears from her right eye crossed over the bridge of her nose and from her left down to her ear. She didn't care for the discomfort; anything familiar she welcomed.

Hours later, Réenée discovered her in shock, shaking. "Joby! What's happened to you?" Her friend slowly touched her fingertips to the other girl's shoulder.

Joby grabbed Réenée's arms and pulled herself up to sit. She raised her hand and signed, _S-I-R-I-U-S. _She wanted to see Sirius. He would make her feel better. He would hold her the right way and continue to hold her until she felt okay.

Réenée pulled her out of bed and hugged her. That wasn't what she wanted. "How are you so sure he likes you very much?"

_Just take me._ She felt herself shake as she walked with Réenée.

They found Sirius in the Great Hall, with his three other friends, at the Gryffindor table along with Lily and another of her friends. He leaped to his feet as soon as he laid eyes on her, careful and closed-off. He immediately gathered her into his arms and held her close without saying a word. He let her make the next move, which she didn't until a few minutes later when she grabbed his face and pulled him into a needy, distracting kiss.

The others averted their eyes and giggled, but stopped when the couple pulled apart and Joby's tears could be seen down her cheeks. Sirius hastily wiped them off.

"Can you tell me what happened?" He kept his voice low as to not sound demanding or frighten her in any way. "What do you need?"

_You_. She kissed him again. Kissing him separated her from the rest of the world; no one else was kissing him, after all. Her every nerve was trained on him and how he held her securely, and her mind began to drift elsewhere; she was finally not thinking about Snape and only thinking of the way Sirius's lips brushed and pressed into hers. She draped her arms around his neck, pulling herself up closer to him. Sirius's arms tightened around her, though he tried not to hurt her. Her body shivered and her breaths didn't come out steady, as they usually did when he kissed her. She was crying silently into the kiss.

Sirius continued to kiss her until she was ready to pull away and tell him what happened because he had to let her get through this her way.

She didn't let him go for long enough to make the others around them uncomfortable, and one by one they looked away. Remus and Réenée quietly started up a conversation while Peter averted his eyes and focused on his homework. James flirted with Lily very subtly (or at least how he _thought_ was subtly), and she somewhat smiled. When Joby did pull away, she pursed her slightly swollen lips and let her head drop to his chest and she kissed the skin showing above his shirt collar. Sirius held her gently and waited for her to say what she needed as he brushed his fingers through her tangled hair and rubbed circles in her back. He kissed the top of her head.

Remus stood and handed her a little bowl of pudding as a peace offering. She took a deep breath and accepted it, a small smile forced onto her lips. _Thank you_, she signed.

Sirius lowered his lips to her ear. "Do you need to tell me what happened, or do you need me to distract you?"

_Distract me_. She took a bite of the pudding and pulled him down to sit in the seat he'd sat in before, and she sat herself down just next to him. He lay his arm around her hips.

"I can do that," he assured her.

Hours later, the couple remained in the Great Hall, content with their own company. Their only problem emerged when Professor Slughorn burst through the doors and dragged Snape behind him. "Bisset, would you care to explain the treacherous scars in this boy's body?"

Joby winced, and her eyes darted to Sirius's. Yes, she knew what happened. And she needed his help to get out of this.

Sirius turned to the other two wizards and growled, "He attacked her. She defended herself." He was working on a bluff, but that thought popped into his head first and he went with his instinct.

"Is this true, Miss Bisset?"

Joby, whose eyes had gone wide as Sirius spoke, nodded slowly. She hadn't told him what happened yet, so how could he know?

Slughorn hissed and his glare turned on Snape. "How dare you. Detention for three weeks with Professor McGonagall." He dragged the boy out of the Hall.

Both students stayed silent for a long time after they were left alone.

Sirius broke the ice and brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. "What did he do to you?"

Joby turned away. _It does not matter._ She squeezed her hands between her thighs to appear smaller, but Sirius cupped her cheek and slowly pulled her mouth up to his. She broke away quickly.

"Joby, darling-"

She pressed her hand to his chest to stop him. _I'm alright._

"Fine. For now. Tell me soon, okay? I want to protect you," he said carefully. "He hurt you, didn't he?"

Joby grimaced. _I'll tell you when I feel okay._

Sirius embraced her tightly. "That's fine with me. Whatever makes you comfortable." He kissed her forehead and let his cheek rest on her head. "For now, I want to stay with you."

_That sounds fine._

**Thanks for reading! Any requests? What do you think should happen next?**

**Stay awesome (:**


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